The former vice president for the American Behcet’s Disease Association has been charged with felony first-degree theft in Shelby County.

38-year-old Leann Brown of Phoenix is accused of stealing from the association while serving as its fiscal agent. She allegedly transferred the money to her own personal bank accounts.

A preliminary hearing on the charge is set for Thursday at the Shelby County Courthouse.

If convicted, she could face up to two years in jail. She was arrested by police earlier this month and was being held in the Shelby County jail.

The investigation into Brown’s activities began in May when someone at the association alerted the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office that more than $25,000 had been embezzled by Brown.

At the time she was serving as a volunteer vice president for the association.

The American Behcet’s Disease Association is a non-profit organization formed to provide information and support to those afflicted with Behcet’s Disease. It is an autoimmune disease that results from damage to blood vessels throughout the body, particularly veins, with most symptoms of the disease caused by inflammation of the blood vessels.

Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA) and the Iowa Corn Promotion Board (ICPB) recently held their director elections.

On July 12^th the ICGA elected:

– District 1 – Bruce Rohwer, O’Brien County *
– District 3 – Bob Hemesath, Winneshiek County
– District 4 – Curt Mether, Harrison County
– District 5 – Roger Zylstra, Jasper County*
– District 7 – Kevin Ross, Pottawattamie County*

ICPB elected directors were:

– District 1 – Lowell Appleton, O’Brien County
– District 3 – Nick Leibold, Chickasaw County*
– District 5 – Roscoe Eggers, Marshall County*
– District 8 – Mark Heckman, Muscatine County
– District 9 – Wayne Humphreys, Louisa County

Director elections are only held in districts where terms have expired. For those districts not listed, current directors serve on the board.

The Midwest Partnership Corporation (MWP) has hired a new executive director.

The MWP announced the hiring of Chad Schreck Monday. He was formerly a regional and economic development planner with the region 12 Council of Governments.

MWP is a non-profit four county economic development organization formed to strengthen the economic vitality of Adair, Audubon, Greene and Guthrie counties. The group works to create jobs, help companies grow, and increase the area’s tax base.

Prior to working with the Council of Governments, Schreck earned a master’s degree from Drake University in public administration with a concentration in executive leadership. He also earned a bachelor’s degree in law, politics and society at Drake and worked as a legislative aide in the Iowa House of Representatives.

The Iowa DOT is urging motorists to use extra caution due to record corn crop likely to be recorded this year in Iowa. That’s because the tall corn is likely to block motorists view at roadway intersections and railroad crossings.

The DOT says motorists should treat intersections that are not marked with a stop or yield sign as if they did have a posted sign. They recommend drivers not to enter an intersection or cross railroad tracks until they are absolutely certain no vehicles or trains are coming from the side

DOT statistics show during 2010 there were 46 crashes at rural intersections attributed to obstructed views by trees or crops. One person died as a result of these crashes and at least 49 people were injured. The state normally sees approximately two fatalities each year due to sight obstructions on rural gravel intersections and driveways.

Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division (HSEMD) would like to remind residents along the swollen Missouri River that flooding is likely to continue and river levels are projected to remain high for several more weeks. It is important that residents in threatened areas remain prepared in case conditions change. Officials urge residents to keep a bag packed with essential items and to establish a family evacuation plan if an evacuation order is given.

Reports say the river flow on the Missouri on Monday was 35.73 feet. The river may begin to recede slightly though in the coming weeks. The US Army Corps of Engineers forecast that the river could drop to 34.5 feet during the first week of August.